Method for cutting a shaped member from a wood block

ABSTRACT

A method of cutting within the interior of a piece of wood or like material having any length and in the length-wise direction without any need to provide a space for the removal of shavings which may be produced, comprising the steps of forming in the piece by conventional means at least one longitudinal groove having a bottom portion which terminates at the level of the internal portion to be cut, inserting in said groove the body of a tool having a cutting portion which corresponds in shape to the portion to be cut and causing said body to follow said groove by subjecting said piece and said tool to a relative movement of unidirectional and longitudinal displacement.

[1 1 3,774,661 [4 1 Nov. 27, I973 METHOD FOR CUTTING A SHAPED MEMBERFROM A WOOD BLOCK [75] Inventor: Louis-Andre Duong Vinh, Auxerre,

France [73] Assignee: Etablissements Guillliet, Auxerre (Yonne), France[22] Filed: Mar. 16, 1971 [21] Appl. No.: 124,779

21,571 4/1930 Netherlands 144/86 Primary Examiner-Andrew R. JuhaszAssistant ExaminerW. D. Bray Att0rney--Clelle W. Upchurch [57] ABSTRACTA method of cutting within the interior of a piece of [52] US. Cl.144/326 R, 144/86, Milli/63 wood or like material having any length andin the 51 I t Cl B27 9 00 length-wise direction without any need toprovide a E 'l i S 36 space for the removal of shavings which may bepro- 1144/32? 5 H duced, comprising the steps of forming in the piece by144786 conventional means at least one longitudinal groove having abottom portion which terminates at the level of the internal portion tobe cut, inserting in said [56] References Cited groove the body of atool having a cutting portion UNITED STATES PATENTS which corresponds inshape to the portion to be cut 347,418 8/1886 Carter 144/86 and causingsaid body to follow said groove by sub- 3.330,315 1967 Tvmlinsfln vl44/218 X jecting said piece and said tool to a relative movement2,922,448 l/ 1960 Srandal 144/326 B of unidirectional and iongitudinaldisplacement FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 1,128,116 4/1962 Germany144/86 3 Claims, 21 Drawing Figures 4 a b 4 4 4 d c 4 e f PAIENIEBunvvI975 SHEET 10? 4 :AIENIEUMIJY 2? 1925 SHEET 2 OF 4 METHOD FOR CUTTING ASHAPED MEMBER FROM A WOOD BLOCK This invention relates to a method and atool for working wood, plastics or like materials in places which areinaccessible to known tools or when working conditions are such thatknown tools could not be employed in a satisfactory manner.

In wood-working operations and in particular in order to obtain shapedmembers for building purposes, the usual procedure consists in removingshavings by means of rotary tools which correspond to the desiredprofile.

In many instances, the profiles of machined wood pieces are such thatthe transverse cross-section of the timber employed would make itpossible not only to obtain the desired piece but also to obtainadditional pieces from portions of the timber which are normally reducedto chips and shavings. In some instances, these wood pieces could berecovered by means of known tools whereas, in other instances, it wouldprove necessary to work in locations which could not be reached by anytools of known design.

Grooves of special shape are also frequently necessary for theattachment of accessories or for certain types of assemblies. Thesegrooves sometimes have a profile such that they cannot be cut at asufficiently high speed to permit completion during the same operationas the remainder of the profile. Alternatively, such grooves can bemachined in a second operation but only under unsatisfactory conditionsof economic performance.

The essential aim of this invention is to solve these problems or thesedifficulties and to permit the possibility of cutting within theinterior of a piece of wood or like material having any length and inthe lengthwise direction without any need to provide a space for theremoval of shavings which may be produced.

It has already been proposed to form grooves within the interior of awood piece but in the direction of the thickness by means of a saw whichextends over part of the length of the tool and a blade which projectswith respect to the saw. However, when making use of a tool of thistype, the saw and the wood piece are driven in reciprocating motion andthe sawdust formed by the saw cannot be removed since the groove isformed in the direction of the width of the piece, that is to say over asmall length.

By contrast and in accordance with the invention, at least onelongitudinal groove having a bottom portion which terminates at thelevel of the internal portion to be cut is formed in the piece byconventional means, the body of a tool having a cutting portion whichcorresponds in shape to the portion to be cut is inserted in said grooveand said body is caused to follow said groove by subjecting said pieceand said tool to a continuous movement of relative longitudinaldisplacement.

The method according to the invention can be carried out by means of atool which also constitutes an object of the invention and has aprism-shaped body as well as at least one cutting portion which projectsfrom said body and is adapted to divide the fibers of the wood in thelongitudinal direction which is parallel to the terminal edges of saidprism.

The method according to the invention makes it possible to work thematerial in places which cannot be reached by means of conventionaltools, to recover any pieces which may be required and which wouldotherwise be lost and to form profiles of special shape such as groovesat the same'speed as in conventional machines.

The method of the invention also makes it possible to divide a block ofwoodin the longitudinal direction into two parts which are limited by astepped line without thereby entailing any loss of material.

In accordance with the invention, two non-traversing longitudinalgrooves which have parallel outlines on the faces of the piece and arenot located in the geometrical line of extension of each other areaccordingly formed in said piece and have bottom portions whichterminate respectively at the level of the two inner extremities of theinternal portion to be cut and the tool body whose cutting portionscorrespond in shape to two complementary sections of said internalportion to be cut is inserted in said grooves.

A certain number of examples of operations which are performed by themethod according to the invention and the tools which are employed forcarrying out said operations are shown by way of a non-limiting examplein the accompanying drawings, wherein FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic end viewof a piece of lumber which is intended to be machined by removal of theshaded portions FIG. 2 illustrates, partly in section, one example of agroove which may be required to fit a seal;

FIG. 3 is a view which is similar to the preceding and shows thecross-section of the groove on a larger scale FIGS. 4 and 5 are viewswhich are similar respectively to FIGS. 2 and 3 but relate to anothershape of groove FIGS. 6 to 10 are diagrammatic end views of differenttypes of tools according to the invention FIG. 11 is a perspective viewof a tool having a number of cutting edges FIG. 12 is a view which issimilar to FIG. 11 but shows a tool having a single cutting edge FIG. 13is another view which is similar to FIG. 11 but shows a tool which isprovided with cylindrical cutting portions FIG. 14 is a diagram which issimilar to FIG. 1 and shows the manner in which the piece of wood can bemachined in accordance with the invention FIGS. 15 to 18 arediagrammatic sectional views showing the manner in which a groove of thetype shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 can be machined in accordance with theinvention FIG. 19 is a diagrammatic sectional view showing the manner inwhich a number of strips can be recovered while machining a groove FIGS.20 and 21 show the manner in which a stepped cut can be made in a woodpiece.

The cross-section of a piece of prepared timber or lumber is shown inFIG. 1 at v, w, x and y. The profile of the machined piece which isdesired is shown by a thick line. The portion to be removed is shaded indiagonal lines. In this portion, the sections a, b, c, d and e, f, g, hcan be recovered by virtue of the invention, thereby permitting asubstantial economy of material.

In order to detach the sections a, b, c, d and e, f, g, h, cuts can beformed in the wood along a, b, c, d, e f and g h by means of a circularsaw, for example. On the other hand, the faces b c and e h cannot beformed by means of conventional tools. However, the invention makes itpossible to form said faces as will be explained below.

In FIG. 2, a wood piece 1 has a groove 2 in which an internal recess 3is formed at the bottom of said groove and serves to attach thesupporting armature 4 of a lipped seal 5. As shown in FIG. 3, thecross-section of the groove 2 can be divided into a rectangle a d e jwhich can readily be machined by means of a saw, for example, and into atriangle b c d which cannot be formed by means of conventional tools.This operation can also be carried out in accordance with the inventionas will also become apparent hereinafter.

In the example of FIG. 4, a groove 6 terminating in a cylindrical cavity7 is intended to be formed in the wood piece 1 for the purpose ofanchoring a lipped seal 8. As is shown in FIG. 5, the portion A B C E FH I J of the groove can be formed by means of a tool of conventionaltype. However, the cross-section portions C D E and F G H arenecessarily machined by means of a tool of very small size which istherefore fragile and which rotates at high speed but cannot perform theoperation in a sufficiently short time.

The invention makes it possible to carry out said operation at normalspeed as will also be seen from the following description.

The tool in accordance with the invention essentially comprises anelongated body in the form of a relatively thin blade having the shapeof a parallelepiped, for example, and having a thickness of a fewmillimeters, the width and length of the tool being dependent on theapplication for which the tool is intended.

The body 10 is rigidly fixed to or integral with at least i one cuttingportion 11 which projects from said body.

As shown in the few examples given in FIGS. 6 to 10, the arrangement andshape of said cutting portion can vary according to the operations to beperformed. The cutting direction of the portion 11 is parallel to thelength of the body 10.

It is clear from FIG. 6 that the cutting portion 11 is perpendicular tothe width of the body 10 in FIG. 7, said portion is inclined withrespect to said width in FIG. 8, the cutting portion is curved and inFIG. 9 has the shape of a hollow cylinder, the axis of which is parallelto the length of the body 10 in FIG. 10, the cutting portion isconstituted by a hollow prism, the axis of which is also parallel to thelength of the body 10.

Any other form of cutting portion, whether open or closed, may becontemplated without thereby departing from the scope of the invention.The tool can also have a number of parallel lines of cutting portions.

FIG. 11 shows a tool of the type which is illustrated diagrammaticallyin FIG. 6 and in which the cutting portion 11 is formed of a number ofteeth having an oblique cutting edge 13, 14, 15 forming prominentsurfaces X, Y, Z on the adjacent face of the body 10 and projecting toan extent which increases progressively in a direction opposite to thedirection of forward motion of the tool as designated by the arrow fm, Xbeing smaller than Y which is in turn smaller than Z. The direction offeed of the wood is indicated by the arrow gw. These directions arerelative in the sense that either or both of the wood pieces can beendowed with motion. The first tooth begins only at a predetermineddistance 16 from the front extremity of the tool in order to ensure aguiding action. This extremity is chamfered at 17 in order to facilitatethe engagement of the tool in the material to be machined. The length ofthe tool and the number of teeth can vary according to requirements inparticular operations of different types for which the tool is used.

In FIG. 12, the tool which is again of the type shown in FIG. 6 has acutting portion 11 which is made in one piece and the cutting edge 18 ofwhich is inclined at an oblique angle to the length of the body 10. Saidedge extends from the body at the predetermined distance 16 and islocated at a progressively greater distance from said body in thedirection opposite to the direction of feed of the tool.

The tool of FIG. 13 is of the general type illustrated in FIG. 9.

The cutting portion 11 of said tool is formed of two tubular cylinders19 and 20 having axes which are parallel to the length of the body 10.The diameter d of the cylinder 19 which is located nearest the forwardend of the tool is smaller than the diameter d of the cylinder 20.

In order to machine complex shapes, provision can be made on one bodyfor cutting portions having different shapes. For example, said shapescan consist both of cylindrical portions such as those of the tool ofFIG. 9 and of prismatic portions such as those of the tool of FIG. 10 orof any combination of suitable shapes.

FIG. 14 shows the manner in which it is possible in accordance with theinvention to detach strips in those portions which correspond to therecoverable sections abcdandefghofthewoodpieceVW XYofFIG. l.

The piece of wood in the form of rough timber or of lumber which hasalready been cut to size is first placed in a multiface planer which isdesigned to smooth one face having a reference R and to formlongitudinal sawcuts 25, 26, 27 and 28 respectively along the sides a b,c d, e f and g h.

There are engaged respectively in said saw-cuts the tools 29, 30, 31 and32 having bodies which are substantially equal in thickness to the widthof the saw-cut and having cutting portions 11a, 11b, 11c and 11d of thetype described with reference to FIG. 6, said cutting portions beingdirected towards each other in pairs and having a sufficient width todetach a strip 33 or 34 along the sides b c or e h respectively in thepiece of wood.

The tools 29, 30, 31 and 32 are mounted either respectively in separatetool-holders 35 or 36 or in a single tool-holder which has a suitableconfiguration.

The machine which is provided with said tool-holders can also be fittedwith conventional tools placed in succession to the tools 29 to 32 inorder that the wood piece may be given the desired profile in a singlepass.

FIGS. 15 to 18 show the manner in which it is possible in accordancewith the invention to machine a groove 6, 7 of the type shown in FIGS. 4and 5.

A groove having a transverse cross-section A B C E F H I .I (as shown inFIG. 16) can readily be machined in the wood piece 1 by means ofconventional tools.

A tool 37 of the type described with reference to FIG. 9 is engaged inthe groove which has thus been formed, as shown in FIG. 17. Said tool ismounted in a tool-holder 38.

The cutting portion 11 of said tool removes the portions of wood whichcorrespond to the sections C D E and F G H which pass into the interiorof the tube and are compressed within this latter.

As illustrated in FIG. 18 and assuming that the tool employed is of themultiple-cylinder type described with reference to FIG. 13 and consists,for example, of three cylinders of increasing diameter, said cylinderswill remove successively the shavings 39, 40 and 41 in order to give afinal profile to the cylindrical portion 7 of the groove 6.

FIG. 19 shows the method adopted for using tools 42 and 43 having twoparallel rows 42a, 42b and 43a, 43b of cutting portions in order torecover two wood strips 44 and 45 in a single operation from a piece 1.Both tools are mounted in a tool-holder 46.

As shown in FIG. 20, a block 1 can be converted into two pieces byforming a cut along the stepped line I m To this end, grooves 47 and 48are cut in the block along the lines I m and n 0 respectively, forexample with a saw a tool 49 which is mounted in a tool-holder 50 and atool 51 mounted in a tool-holder 52 are then engaged respectively insaid grooves. In this example, the tools are provided with cuttingportions of the type shown in FIG. 6 for the purpose of separating thetwo pieces along the line m n (as shown in FIG. 21).

The invention can be carried into effect whenever it proves necessary tomachine materials which permit the operation of the tools described inthe foregoing. One use for which the invention is particularlyadvantageous is the cutting of sectional members of wood or of syntheticor plastic materials for such purposes as building construction.

It is readily understood that modifications can be made in theembodiments which have just been described, especially by substitutingequivalent technical means, without thereby departing either from thescope or the spirit of the present invention.

What I claim is 1. A method for separating a shaped member from a pieceof wood or similar fibrous material in its lengthwise direction withoutthe production of shavings which comprises the steps of forming in thesaid piece at least one longitudinal groove having a bottom portionwhich terminates in the vicinity of the internal portion to be cut,inserting in said groove the body of a tool having a cutting portionwhich corresponds in shape to the portion to be separated and separatesthe fibers of said piece without producing shavings and moving said bodyalong said groove by subjecting said piece and said tool to a relativemovement of unidirectional and longitudinal displacement.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein are formed in said piece twonon-traversing longitudinal grooves which have parallel outlines on thefaces of the piece and are not located in the line of extension of eachother and have bottom portions which terminate respectively in thevicinity of the two inner extremities of the internal portion to beseparated and inserting in said grooves the tool body whose cuttingportions correspond in shape to two complementary sections of saidinternal portion to be cut.

3. A method for cutting a shaped member from a block of wood or the likewhich comprises cutting a groove which is substantially rectangular incrosssection across the grain in said block to a depth substantiallyequal to one dimension of the said shaped member, providing a toolhaving a body and a cutting portion with a cutting edge whichcorresponds in configuration to the shape of said member, inserting thetool body in the groove with the cutting edge disposed adjacent to thegroove in a position whereby upon relative movement between the blockand tool the body moves in the groove and the cutting edge slits theblock along the grain without forming any shavings or other waste andthereby cuts the shaped member from the block, and moving said tool bodyalong the groove by causing relative movement between the block andtool.

UNITED STATES PATENT FFlC E I i CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent no.3,774,661 Dated novemberg'l. 1973 Inventor) Louis-Andre Duong Vinh It iscertified that error appears in the above-identified p atent and thatsaid Letters Pa'tent are hereby corrected as shown below: 7

On the title page at Item 30, it should read:

Claims priority, applicatiofi France," March l9, 1970, 70 09878.

Signed and sealed this 24th day of September 1974.

(SEAL) Attest:

McCOY M.GIBSON JR. o c.- MARSHALL DANN Attest ing Officer Comissioner ofPatents FORM PO-l050(10-69) v I v 1 I v sco mu -oc soakin Y'r'u.s.sovum'u urrr'l 1 -34

1. A method for separating a shaped member from a piece of wood orsimilar fibrous material in its length-wise direction without theproduction of shavings which comprises the steps of forming in the saidpiece at least one longitudinal groove having a bottom portion whichterminates in the vicinity of the internal portion to be cut, insertingin said groove the body of a tool having a cutting portion whichcorresponds in shape to the portion to be separated and separates thefibers of said piece without producing shavings and moving said bodyalong said groove by subjecting said piece and said tool to a relativemovement of unidirectional and longitudinal displacement.
 2. A methodaccording to claim 1, wherein are formed in said piece twonon-traversing longitudinal grooves which have parallel outlines on thefaces of the piece and are not located in the line of extension of eachother and have bottom portions which terminate respectively in thevicinity of the two inner extremities of the internal portion to beseparated and inserting in said grooves the tool body whose cuttingportions correspond in shape to two complementary sections of saidinternal portion to be cut.
 3. A method for cutting a shaped member froma block of wood or the like which comprises cutting a groove which issubstantially rectangular in cross-section across the grain in saidblock to a depth substantially equal to one dimension of the said shapedmember, providing a tool having a body and a cutting portion with acutting edge which corresponds in configuration to the shape of saidmember, inserting the tool body in the groove with the cutting edgedisposed adjacent to the groove in a position whereby upon relativemovement between the block and tool the body moves in the groove and thecutting edge slits the block along the grain without forming anyshavings or other waste and thereby cuts the shaped member from theblock, and moving said tool body along the groove by causing relativemovement between the block and tool.